Gutbuster #2-- Westwood Lake,

Getting to the end of the race with Stefan Jacobson getting ready to blast past me.I did short course 13+ k.m . he did the long course 21 k.m  A half Hour separated our starting times.We didnt start at  9a.m with the long course as they had  announced  put awhile later they lined us up under the Front Runner banner and off we we went along the trail besides West Wood Lake

It didn't take long before we were running in a single file heading up a narrow rocky trail up the mtn , It was a rough biking trail and rocks and roots were sticking out all over the place , picking your line of travel was on every once mind , just when you thought that you had every thing lined up you would come to a corner or mucky spot in the ground, then a dip in the trail or a sharp turn so that you could never get a rhythm going  after running with different groups that were going my pace , I settled in the back off the group never setting the pace I found it to be easier to stay in the back,this way I didn't have to look out for markers for were the trail went, If you let the runners get to far ahead of you it was easy to loose sight of them with all the twist and turns in the trail  The course description said nice trails with  nice uphills and sharp descents and maybe a few creek crossings  , the maybe turned into Yep I had to get wet more then a few times , although the  water was cold it felt good on the legs and once out of the water your feet were dry after a few steps, some time the lead runner would slip and running in a single line I keep a few steps behind the runner in front of me this way I can pick my own line trough the trail  and miss the spots that he has troubles with , I can make the corners better or step over roots and rocks or puddles that he missed. So running behind  is good as long as the pace is the same as my pace or even a bit faster is also helpful If the lead runner makes a wrong turn, He was hollered at , past and we just keep on going  The trail had some scenic views and tricky descents were you're toe nails were digging in the ground to slow you down a bit so that you wouldn't roll down the steep slippery section of the trails, some one asked me if I thought it was better to run fast on trails , I told him i thought it was, I find that having a bit of speed with trail running carries me over many roots and rocks and up little inclines as if your floating along the ground with my feet only staying on the ground long enough to sent me in the direction I want to go,mind you if you hit something or trip you do land harder, At the end of the race I was mostly running by my self and when I  got to anything that resembled a hill I would walk a bit  so  I could get my breath back and then I would go again, At the the end of the run I was passed by Stefan  he was running the 21k.m race and he had done the momar  race the  day before which is a very tough race.

After the race many runners headed for Westwood Lake for a nice ice  bath, the Mtn in the back ground is were we ran.